Food and "Boo"ze - An October 2016 PTR/TR UPDATED 11/28/16 x3

[missangelalexis]

Your plans sound great so far! It's nice that you will be taken advantage of some of the demos that F&W has to offer! Your MK day sounds like it's going to be full of so many fun things! I absolutely love breakfast at Crystal Palace and lunch at BOG!

 

[mindylee847]

Your plans sound great so far! It's nice that you will be taken advantage of some of the demos that F&W has to offer! Your MK day sounds like it's going to be full of so many fun things! I absolutely love breakfast at Crystal Palace and lunch at BOG!

I am so excited to try out Crystal Palace and BOG lunch!

 

[mindylee847]

Plan of Attack – Part 2 10/26/16 through 10/29/16

Here’s the continuation of our plans from my last post.

Wednesday – October 26th, Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure

Wednesday is going to be a very full day. Having been out probably until midnight the night before, we’re hoping to be parked and at the USO gates before open at 8 AM. I think we’re just grabbing a quick breakfast at City Walk?? I’m not exactly sure what the plan is for food. I do know that I will need some coffee. We need to pick up our park tickets (park to park), HHN add on, and HHN RIP Tour things at will call. Once we’re in the park, we are going to head straight over to Diagon Alley. Mike said we aren’t allowed to run, lol. We’re going to do Gringotts and then take the train over to IOA to go on Kong, Spider-Man, and Hulk… and then spend the rest of the time in IOA in Hogsmeade. After that we’ll be heading over to Universal Studios to spend the majority of day there. My brother has never been to USO and I’ve only been once so that park is priority.

We’re going to try to get into the Simpsons area/gated area before the park closes to eat dinner there in between park close and HHN begins. Then we’ll walk around a bit and head over to check in to our tour. I was told the tour takes up to 5 hours and then afterwards, our RIP lanyards become unlimited express passes. I’m really excited for this tour. It guarantees us entry into each house once with no wait and the tour guides give a bit of extra background before going in. The park is open until 1 AM that night.

8 AM Universal Studios opens
9 AM Islands of Adventure opens
5 PM Universal Studios closes
6 PM Halloween Horror Nights begins
6:30 PM Check in for RIP Tour
7 PM Non-Private RIP Tour begins

Thursday - October 27th, Magic Kingdom

We plan on sleeping in this day until about 8:30 or so since it’s another long day. We plan to be out until midnight again… third night in a row! We have another Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party this day. The main focus of this party is character meet and greets, other than Jack and Sally. It will be a pretty go with the flow type of day before the party begins and we’re finally trying the tea time they have at the Grand Floridian.

My brother, Erik, leaves this morning around 9 or so. He’ll be headed out the door when we’re heading out for breakfast so that should work out well.

9:30 AM Olivia’s Café Breakfast
2:30 PM Afternoon Tea at Garden View Tea Room
7 PM MNSSHP Begins

Friday – October 28th, EPCOT

On our last full day, we’ll be going to EPCOT to hit food and wine pretty hard throughout the afternoon. Since we are vegetarian, I didn’t feel the need to focus more time on the booths than a few hours of walking around. From the menus, we’re looking at a lot of dessert options and just a handful of actual food options. We have another MIMICI Demonstration this day but this one involves bourbon. Mike has gotten really into bourbon lately, specifically bourbon brewed beers… but I thought this would be a really interesting experience. I do also want to do some of Remy’s Hide and Squeak throughout the day here as well.

After F&W, we are heading to Hoop Dee Doo Revue. Mike’s been wanting to go back for years and they were great at accommodating my veggie needs last time so I wasn’t worried about it.

You know, I’m not sure when we’ll have time to pack back up to go home now that I’ve written this all out. Oh well! lol

8:00 AM Olivia’s Café Breakfast
4:00 PM Mix It, Make It, Celebrate It! – Maker’s Mark Mixology with a Master Distiller – Greg Davis, Maker’s Mark & Bobby “G” Gleason, Beam Suntory
8:30 PM Hoop Dee Doo Revue Category 2

Saturday – October 29th

And lastly, we have our departure day. As we’ve made tradition… we’ll be headed to the Polynesian for breakfast at Kona Café. We also like to pick up treats for our coworkers from the Polynesian as well. They have really adorable coconut patties shaped like Mickeys here.

And then it’s time to hit the road and head back home. That’ll be it. L It makes me sad to even write about it so I’m going to stop here!

7:30 AM Kona Café Breakfast
​

 

[frostymojo]

Joining in

 

[mindylee847]

Joining in

Welcome! Thanks for joining.

 

[missangelalexis]

The rest of your plans sound great too! You certainly will have a busy day at Universal but it sounds like it will be a blast, especially with your brother there.

Excited for you!

 

[disneyguy4life]

That sounds like an amazing trip!!! I am so happy that you are making a sad day into something positive!!! It sounds like a non stop commando trip... just my style! You go get it girl! i can't wait for further updates and the actual TR. EPIC!!

 

[mindylee847]

The rest of your plans sound great too! You certainly will have a busy day at Universal but it sounds like it will be a blast, especially with your brother there.

Excited for you!

Yeah, it will be a few busy days! I'm not usually up past 10 PM so being out after midnight three days in a row is going to do a number on me. I'll need a lot of coffee and I'm normally just a tea drinker now! Yikes!! lol I'm so very glad that my brother is joining us. He can get on our nerves, but I think that's true of most families and this will be a really great time for us! He's also very supportive of my anxiety, claustrophobia, and things so he watches out for me in haunted houses now that we're older. lol

That sounds like an amazing trip!!! I am so happy that you are making a sad day into something positive!!! It sounds like a non stop commando trip... just my style! You go get it girl! i can't wait for further updates and the actual TR. EPIC!!

Super glad ya found my new report!! I didn't even mean to make this one into a commando trip, but it just kind of happened! I booked so many fun things and I couldn't stop. lol Is it bad that I'm already excited to get back and start writing up my trip report?? So many fun things to look forward to.

 

[disneyguy4life]

Super glad ya found my new report!! I didn't even mean to make this one into a commando trip, but it just kind of happened! I booked so many fun things and I couldn't stop. lol Is it bad that I'm already excited to get back and start writing up my trip report?? So many fun things to look forward to.

I am glad too. I wouldn't miss it for the world. That was my last trip to WDW... one thing led to another. As soon as you knew it we were way over loaded. I got a little to excited in the planning stage. But you are absolutely right... there are tons of things to do!! I look forward to sharing in the memories.

 

[mindylee847]

You guys, I just started watching American Horror Story: Freak Show. I'm so horrified of Twisty and I'm only one episode in!!! I've watched seasons 1 and 2, but stopped watching during Coven because I thought it was too gross. Mike wanted to watch the seasons that the house is going to be based off of... so that means Season 1 - Murder House, Season 4 - Freak Show, and Season 5 - Hotel. Since we've already seen the first, we started with Freak Show and I am FREAKING out.

I'm scared of clowns. I think it's because as a young teen, I watched the first half of It and never finished it. I only watched up enough to realize that clowns are horrifying and then stopped. lol I've been chased at our Six Flags Great America during Fright Fest by clowns and cried and I've even been pulled out of a house here on our State Fair Grounds because I started having a panic attack. Guys, guys.... for real. Twisty is MESSED up and I'm only one episode in!! I may have to skip this house.

Granted, those things happened well about... 10 years ago now. I'm older and wiser right? My brother no longer pushes me into clowns because he actually wants me to get through houses now. I wasn't worried about Chance because I don't really know too much of her background and I probably would be better with Twisty had I not watched the show at all... oops!

Mike and Erik are pretty determined to get me through this house though... so I will continue to watch the show through covered eyes and I'll keep you posted on if I get desensitized and feel prepared for this house AT ALL!! lol

 

[missangelalexis]

Twisty is a terrifying character!! From what I remember, I don't think he dominates the entire season so you should be able to get through I hope!

 

[buteraa]

Fellow Wisconsinite here! Looking forward to your trip. My husband and I are headed down Christmas week and this will be our first time driving down as well....

 

[awalker1015]

We are headed down in October, too, but at the beginning of the month. Its my favorite time to go! I am so sorry about your dad. We lost my father in law to suicide a few months after we married and it changed us both forever. Any death is tragic, but suicide leaves such a difficult legacy for its survivors. Many hugs to you and I think spending the anniversary of it in Disney is a wonderful idea.

Look forward to following along!

Amanda

 

[mindylee847]

Twisty is a terrifying character!! From what I remember, I don't think he dominates the entire season so you should be able to get through I hope!

Alright, I watched about half the season now and... get this... I'm actually not really terrified of Twisty anymore. I won't spoil anything for people but you're right. He's definitely not too big of a deal and now with more of his story I almost feel bad for the guy. Couldn't sleep last night though much because this is probably one of the most intense things I've watched since my dad passed. I usually watch only light-hearted, fun entertainment other than Game of Thrones. So we're taking a little break from the show until the weekend so I don't have to go to work the next day exhausted like I am today.

Fellow Wisconsinite here! Looking forward to your trip. My husband and I are headed down Christmas week and this will be our first time driving down as well....

Hi there, Badger! Driving down isn't too bad. My husband and I have done it three times now and it just gets easier. We usually leave at 4 AM to miss Chicago and Indianapolis traffic and it works out well. This time, Mike wants to leave at 3 AM or earlier. Haha, I say he's dreaming! I need at least a little sleep before we hit the road for the long trek down. I suggest stopping in the mountains at one of the picnic areas for one of your breaks. It's just beautiful!

We are headed down in October, too, but at the beginning of the month. Its my favorite time to go! I am so sorry about your dad. We lost my father in law to suicide a few months after we married and it changed us both forever. Any death is tragic, but suicide leaves such a difficult legacy for its survivors. Many hugs to you and I think spending the anniversary of it in Disney is a wonderful idea.

Look forward to following along!

Amanda

Hi, Amanda! Thanks for joining in. I'm so excited to experience Halloween at Disney World! I've heard so many wonderful things. Thank you for the sympathies. And I am sorry about your loss as well. It's been very hard to relate to others, even those who have lost a parent as well but not by suicide. It's torn such a deep hole in my soul that I feel each and every day. I'm so very glad that my brother is coming out for part of the week and we'll be able to be together.

 

[mindylee847]

Bullet Journal Prep

I just started bullet journaling a little over a week and a half ago. If you don't know what that is, it's kind of like a planner and a to-do list and a journal all in one book that you make by hand yourself. You can have your weekly spreads with your to do lists and also pages for tracking habits or other notes and activities that you find to be important. I've found that my mind feels more at ease with what's on my plate now. I feel almost as relaxed about how I'm going through life as I did before my dad passed. It's been a great tool for me.

So of course, I wanted to utilize it for our upcoming trip in October. I've already made three different spreads to help me journal our trip and I wanted to share them with you guys!

The first page is for notes from the Food and Wine demonstrations we are doing. Mike already agreed that it's okay we throw my journal in the backpack so that I can make sure I take fresh notes right after the demonstrations!

Next, I made a spread to keep track of the haunted houses at Horror Nights. I will be able to list the order we visit them, the ranking of one through nine of which I liked best to worst, a spot to rate how scary it was, and a place for notes!

I'm really obsessed with this bloody tape I found at Michaels!

And lastly, I created a dining review page for our current ADRs.

I'm not sure what I else I want to track in my bullet journal, but I am really excited about these pages!! They will definitely come in handy when I'm reporting back to you guys.

One more fun news bit - I get to make our Fastpass+ selections on Wednesday morning! Wish me luck on getting Frozen at a good time in EPCOT!! Since I've booked us up for so much stuff I really need particular times. I'll let you know how that goes later this week.​

 

[missangelalexis]

That's a great idea! Very cool!

And good luck on making your FPs!!

 

[mindylee847]

60 Days!!! Fastpass+ Selections

Today is the day!! I woke up about 30 minutes early to make our fastpass selections this morning. I already had made an Excel spreadsheet outlining all of our reservations and things so that we wouldn't overlap. I'm pleased to say that we got everything we wanted except for The Seas with Nemo and Friends around 7 before our Coral Reef dining reservation. Of all things to not get?? Oh well!!

Here are our fastpasses.

Sunday
Toy Story Midway Mania 1:05 PM - 2:05 PM
Tower of Terror 2:25 PM - 3:25 PM
Star Tours 4:15 PM - 5:15 PM

Monday
The Seas with Nemo and Friends 9:30 AM - 10:30 AM
Spaceship Earth 10:30 AM - 11:30 AM
Frozen Ever After 6:05 PM - 7:05 PM

Tuesday
Seven Dwarfs Mine Train 11:25 AM - 12:25 PM
Peter Pan 4:05 PM - 5:05 PM
Pirates of the Caribbean 5:15 PM - 6:15 PM

Thursday
Jungle Cruise 10:30 AM - 11:30 AM
Seven Dwarfs Mine Train 12:10 PM - 1:10 PM
Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin 5:25 PM - 6:25 PM

Friday
The Seas with Nemo and Friends 9:10 AM - 10:10 AM
Soarin' 10:15 AM - 11:15 AM
Journey Into Imagination with Figment 5:15 PM - 6:15 PM

I think those are pretty much set then. I'm kind of annoyed that I can't get Test Track in there on EPCOT days since Tier 1 has Soarin', Test Track, and Frozen all on the same level. The new Soarin' better be good because honestly, we never were going on the old one anymore. We considered it a waste of time with the poor picture quality. I know it's a fan favorite, but it just never mattered to us. Test Track though - love it! I miss the old one but I love the new interactive elements with creating your own car. I'm pretty competitive so I think it's fun to try to make the best car. Ah well.

That's all for now! I'll try and put together a full schedule before we go so you can see the layout of the plans... We'll see how much we stick to these fastpasses when we actually get there. ​

 

[missangelalexis]

COngrats on getting all your FP!! You have some great selections! I agree, it's annoying that all 3 of those rides are in the same tier

 

[mindylee847]

Update on our dining... I made a change! Who's surprised?...

I just saw a photo of the new costumes for Minnie's Holiday Dine for October and I could not resist changing our reservation from Sci Fi to Minnie's. I just had to do it. Mickey's cape looks like bat wings! I'll have to book Sci Fi for our trip in March since we absolutely adore the place, but why not start our Halloween festivities early and see Minnie in her Halloween costume on arrival night?

 

[mcjaco]

Looks like we'll have a lot Trip Reports during October. We head down the first week. We literally have no plans on where we're going on what days. I have no idea how anyone plans that far out....then again I've been so many times, I've seen it all!

Must be a Chicago/Milwaukee thing to want to get out of Dodge before the snow comes!